Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis

Background

The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis was established in February 2013 as a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in Lakewood, Ohio. As of 2024, the organization is active in Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South Asia, and conducts research and advocacy in those regions focused on developing economic rationales for the promotion of weather-dependent energy sources favored by environmentalists. ^{1 2}

Activity

The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis generally aims its publications at audiences of market investors, governments, businesses, and energy ratepayers. ¹

Subjects of the organization’s research and advocacy in the United States include the Chuitna Coal Mine in Arkansas, Westmoreland Coal in Wyoming, Oakland Coal Exports in California, the Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association in Colorado, the Driftwood LNG plant in Louisiana, and the Exelon-Pepco merger. ¹

Aside from publishing papers and engaging in advocacy, the organization also hosts an annual Energy Finance Conference highlighting its issue areas and research. For instance, the organization’s 2024 Energy Finance conference, which was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, featured workshops and panels on “decarbonizing transport and driving investment,” “corporate decarbonization” (in the context of evolving environmental, social, and corporate governance activism), and “catalyzing private capital for the energy transition in emerging Asia.” ^{3 4}

Funding

The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis has received funding from aligned and left-of-center organizations including the Charles and Helen Brown Foundation, the ClimateWorks Foundation, Climate Imperative, the Energy Foundation, Heinz Endowments, the Just Transition Fund, the KR Foundation, the Laudes Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, the Mertz-Gilmore Foundation, Oceankind, the Park Foundation, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, the Rockefeller Family Fund, the Sandler Foundation, and the Wallace Global Fund. ¹

Leadership

Sandy Buchanan is the CEO of the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. Previously, she was the executive director of Ohio Citizen Action, a left-of-center environmentalist anti-coal membership organization, and a board member of organizations including the Environmental Working Group, the Ohio State Emergency Response Commission, and Neighborhood Family Practice. ⁵

Todd Leahy is the North America director of the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. Previously, he was the deputy cabinet secretary for New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department; manager of the New Mexico affiliate of the National Wildlife Federation; and an attorney with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. ⁶

Arjun Flora is the Europe director of the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. Previously, he worked in energy technology investment banking at Alexa Capital and Jefferies in the United Kingdom. ⁷

Sergio Knaebel is the president of the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis’s board of directors as well as the vice president of the Sandler Foundation and a member of the board of Earthjustice. Previously, he was a program officer at the Packard Foundation  and a board member of organizations including the Biodiversity Funders Group, the Golden Oak Montessori School, and Island Conservation. ⁸